The film “Monaco and the War” was screened in the Princess Grace Theatre on Thursday night in the presence of Prince Albert.
“Monaco and the War” is a well-documented evocation of living conditions in the Principality between 1939 and 1945. The emotion of the various witnesses who appeared in the narrative, the quality of the editing and its symbolic significance make it a captivating testimony of the links between Monaco and this period in world history.
At the end of the screening, and in the presence of the Sovereign, several of those who appeared in the film were invited to take the stage of the theatre with their relatives for an emotional “family photo”.
Directed by journalist and writer Frédéric Laurent, more than four years of work went into making the film, which was co-produced by the Government’s Communication Department, the Society for the Management of Copyright (SOGEDA) and the Estate Administration of the Sovereign Prince.
It was first screened in January to teaching staff as well as to the association Pour le Devoir de Mémoire (For the Duty of Memory). It will also be broadcast on Monaco Info on Tuesday, May 1, at 7 pm.
Charlotte Casiraghi, Founding Member of Rencontres Philosophiques de Monaco. Photo; Manuel Vitali/DC
Charlotte Casiraghi has written a book in collaboration with her former philosophy professor, Robert Maggiori. Titled Archipel des passions, it was published by Éditions Seuil on February 19.
Princess Caroline’s elder daughter is a graduate in philosophy and founding member of Monaco Philosophical Meetings. Charlotte has dedicated the 336-page book to her father, Stefano Casiraghi, who died in a motor boat accident in 1990 when she was only four years old.
The granddaughter of Princess Grace co-authored the book – whose title refers to fiery passion which can create fertile ground from its destructive forces – with Robert Maggiori, a philosopher and literary critic at Libération newspaper.
Maggiori was also Charlotte’s philosophy professor at the François Couperin high school in Fontainebleau. In an interview with ELLE, he described his former student as someone endowed with “an incredible perfectionism”.
For those wanting a rich and enlightening activity in Monaco, then look up towards the Jardin Exotique, where prehistoric Monaco can be discovered.
Here you’ll find the “grotte du Jardin exotique” (cave) and the Prehistoric Anthropology Museum, Monaco’s oldest museum, which traces the country’s first inhabitants.
Prince Albert I of Monaco, the great-great-grandfather of the current Sovereign, was a promoter of oceans and science, but he was also fond of archaeology. The Prince founded the Museum of Prehistoric Anthropology (MAP) in 1902 “with a view to conserve the relics of primitive humanity excavated in the Principality and neighbouring regions”.
For many years, the Prince had sensed the potential of the “Observatory Cave” to the northwest but it wasn’t until 1916 (five years after he introduced the constitution to the Principality) that a construction project revealed archaeological vestiges. Over the following four years, Canon Léonce de Villeneuve, the first Director of the Prehistoric Anthropology Museum in Monaco, oversaw excavations. (The Anthropology Museum moved to its current home at 56 bis boulevard du Jardin Exotique in 1959.)
In 1952, Louis Barral, a former museum director and lexicographer (he co-authored the Monégasque–French Dictionary in 1983), created the Association monégasque de Préhistoire. Today the Monaco Prehistory Association exists under the patronage of HSH Prince Albert II, and its current President, Patrick Simon, along with General Secretary Elena Notter, lead the association’s mission to promote research and education in prehistoric science – quaternary geology, paleoanthropology, archaeology, palaeontology and physical science dating.
Across the year, various events, including exhibition previews and special guided visits are held for members, and when weather permits getting together on the Museum terrace with breathtaking views of the Rock.
Terrace view. Photo: Gabrielle Darricarrere
In spring and winter, outdoor visits and discovery walks with a special archaeological and anthropological focus are regularly organised in the region, like at the Balzi Rossi Caves in the village of Grimaldi in Ventimiglia.
Members also have the opportunity to take part in Monegasque cultural and scientific heritage workshops, for 6 to 10 people, which take place in MAP’s research laboratories. These workshops, like all of the association’s events, are included in the annual membership fee: a very modest €20.
The Monaco Prehistory Association also puts on fascinating conferences by international researchers and professors, who come specifically to the Principality to share their scientific discoveries.
Dr Noisette Bec Drelon, from Aix-Marseille University, will be the next guest speaker on Friday, March 9, at 6 pm, when she will discuss European dolmens or sacred tombs. Entry is free but reservation is required (+377 98 98 80 06).
As you can see, the Association monégasque de Préhistoire provides a backstory to Monaco that you won’t find in a travel book. For more on membership, see map-mc.org.
Monaco Insider, Gabrielle Darricarrere, is Editor of Riviera Quality Life, which provides information in French about the region. See rivieraqualitylife.com or facebook.com/RivieraQualityLife. Article first published on March 1, 2018.
From March 6, the town hall’s Social Action Service will be offering the services of a public writer to help over-60s – Monegasques and residents of the Principality, as well as retired municipal staff – experiencing difficulties with administrative procedures.
This new free service “SOS Administratif” will include help with understanding documents (letters, forms, contracts, invoices …) and drafting personal or administrative short documents.
In addition, an explanation of the “administrative machinery” and support and assistance for difficulties encountered when making appointments with experts will be provided.
The SOS Administratif service, overseen by the Social and Family Economics Counsellor, will be available every Tuesday between 9 am and noon at the Social Action Service (Service d’Actions Sociales) at the mairie.
No appointment is necessary and the service is totally free. More info on +377) 93 15 28 83 or at unitesociale@mairie.mc
Article first published March 3, 2018.
HGTV still casting for new Mediterranean Life TV show
HGTV is still casting for Mediterranean Life, a new HGTV show set on the Mediterranean coast of Europe.
Similar to House Hunters International, Mexico Life and Caribbean Life, Mediterranean Life will tell the stories of English native speaking families/couples/individuals who’ve started their new life in Mediterranean Europe and are renting or buying a property here.
The satellite television channel is looking for energetic people who are in love with the Mediterranean lifestyle and searching for a new home by the Mediterranean Sea.
Anyone interested in being on the show should send an email with their story to mediterraneanlifecasting@tvn.pl. Make sure to include: your email, your name, phone number, location and a photo of you and your family.
HGTV, which reaches over 40 million households in the US and accessible in 70 countries, is owned by Scripps Networks Interactive, “a leading developer of engaging lifestyle content in the home, food and travel categories for television, the internet and emerging platforms”.
SNI’s lifestyle portfolio includes the popular television and internet brands DIY Network, Food Network, Cooking Channel, Travel Channel and Great American Country, which collectively engage more than 190 million consumers each month.
The company’s global networks and websites reach millions of consumers across North and South America, Asia, Europe, Australia the Middle East and Africa.
International operations include TVN, Poland’s premier multi-platform company; UKTV, an independent commercial joint venture with BBC Worldwide; Asian Food Channel, the first pan-regional TV food network in Asia; and lifestyle channel Fine Living Network.
Lewis Gilbert, who directed three James Bond films – You Only Live Twice, The Spy Who Loved Me, and Moonraker – died in Monaco on February 23, at the age of 97.
Bond producers Michael G Wilson and Barbara Broccoli confirmed Gilbert’s death in a statement. “It is with great sadness that we learn of the passing of our dear friend Lewis Gilbert.
“Lewis was a true gentleman. He made an enormous contribution to the British film industry as well as the Bond films … His films are not only loved by us but are considered classics within the series. He will be sorely missed.”
Speaking to the BBC, the director’s son, John Gilbert, said his father “died peacefully in his sleep”.
Born in Hackney, Gilbert directed more than 40 films and was also a prolific writer and producer. He won two BAFTAs, for Reach for the Sky (1956) and Educating Rita (1983). His 1966 film Alfie was nominated for numerous Academy Awards.
In 1997 Gilbert was appointed a CBE for his achievements in film, and five years later directed his final picture, Before You Go (2002) with Dermot Crowley (Major Kamp in the 1983 Bond film Octopussy) in one of the roles.
In his autobiography, All My Flashbacks, published in 2010, he said that The Spy Who Loved Me was the high point of his career.
Monaco resident Steven Saltzman, son of Harry Saltzman, told Monaco Life: ”The Bond family in Monaco weeps again, less than a year after the passing of Sir Roger Moore, at the news of Lewis Gilbert CBE’s death last Friday.”
The co-founder of Top Marques Monaco added, “Lewis was the director who took James Bond to Japan in You Only Live Twice with a script penned by Roald Dahl, which gave the world the first real views Japan after WWII. We saw Sumo wrestlers, Japanese Supercars and extraordinary gyro Little Nellie! His direction and reveal of Donald Pleasence as Blofeld is a Bond masterclass in menace.
“Hilary and I send our condolences to his family.”
The funeral for Lewis Gilbert, who had lived in Monaco since 1975, is expected to take place next week in Monaco.
Gilbert’s death comes less than a year after Monaco resident and iconic James Bond actor Sir Roger Moore died in May of last year, after a short battle with cancer. He was 89 years old.
